For thousands of years, the island gods slumbered. Now, mortals have arrived, bringing with them the power of belief and the hunger for the miraculous. The gods now vie to become the chief deity of these islanders through enacting various miracles to fulfill the community’s needs, to inspire the creation of shrines, and to shape the very earth to advance their own divine message and thwart the blasphemies of the other gods.
Players take on the role of these gods. The game centers around manipulating the mortals by performing miracles such as the creation of manna, idols, and auras, transforming the landscape, and acquiring the power such miracles require. After each player has performed miracles for the turn, some of the mortals act, randomly selecting from the options of exploring, praying, or enshrining idols.
Players earn victory points through the mortals' prayer, the enshrining and worship of their idols, and through providing the manna for the island's feasts. However, players can subvert the victory point race by vying to gain enough zealous worshipers to win the game outright.